IIM A PGPX students complete international immersion visits

Students of IIM A’s One Year Full Time MBA (Post Graduate Programme for Executives -PGPX) recently completed immersion visits at universities around the world. Students spent two weeks in Hong Kong, France, or the United Kingdom at leading business schools in these markets – The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), ESCP, and Warwick Business School.

The immersion programme gives students an opportunity to learn from leading academicians and from first hand accounts of native business leaders about the nuances of doing business in those markets. The PGPX students bring an average of over three years of diverse international out of an overall ten years of experience.

They often therefore choose to visit markets that they are less familiar with or which they see themselves doing business with in their post MBA leadership roles.

Reflecting on the learning from his visit to France, Shishir Saraiya, a data scientist and PGPX student felt that, “Going to ESCP provided me with a window into how countries that were at war just 70 years ago are cooperating in unprecedented economic and political ways to ensure progress.”

A significant component of the immersion programme involved visits to local businesses and engaging with the top management of those companies. The companies visited this year included Compton Verney, DCS, Delphi, and Unipart Logistics in the UK, CNES, Airbus Defence and Space, IBM, Schneider Electric, and Louis Vuitton in France, and Hong Kong Gold & Silver Exchange, Pacific Andes, Hong Kong Exchange, Swift in Hong Kong.

The meetings offered close-quartered networking opportunities for participants.

Kavita Duggal is a PGPX student and brings a rare combination of professional expertise in horticultural and IT. Commenting on her visit to the UK, her first, she remarked that her interactions with the marketing head of Compton Verney provided her “The opportunity to share ideas on monetization of a landscape that carried cultural heritage and also discover a common passion for leveraging digital marketing and analytics for fine-tuning customer segmentation.”

As per an IIM A note, the faculty members of the recipient schools were thoroughly impressed with the maturity and the grasp of the participants.

Speaking about his assessment of the groups of IIM-A PGPX students he has engaged with, Professor Stephen Frost said, “Each group has approached learning about business in China with an open, sophisticated and global view. IIM Ahmedabad has every reason to be proud of its ambassadors to Hong Kong, and can surely congratulate itself on the levels of leadership and professional acumen demonstrated during the visit.” Noting the quality of the presentations made by the students, he said that, “The presentations attained a level so high in fact that – with some slight tweaking – the entire session could form the basis of a consulting brief for executives contemplating investing or starting business in China.”

Noting the quality of the presentations made by the students, Professor Stephen Frost said that, “The presentations attained a level so high in fact that – with some slight tweaking – the entire session could form the basis of a consulting brief for executives contemplating investing or starting business in China.”

Samson Samuel, a distinguished technology professional and PGPX student, considered the Hong Kong trip to be an “eye-opener” and stated that, “Company visits exposed us to Hong Kong’s vibrant multinational business market, while insightful sessions by the faculty sensitised us to some of the business and geo-political issues and challenges that are accompanying China’s global ascendancy.”

Ultimately, the immersion programme is an important platform for a group of experienced professionals who are set to play leading roles in various industries to familiarise themselves with markets they will engage with in future and forge rewarding business networks. Not to mention, the weekends and evenings provide many opportunities for students to travel, engage with locals, and learn about the culture in these countries.